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SCUTTLEBUTT 3680 - Thursday, September 20, 2012Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sailingscuttlebutt RSS: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/rss/index.xml Today's sponsors: Ullman Sails and APS. BUSY WEEKEND Got plans for Columbus Day weekend? The annual anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas, which occurred on October 12, 1492, is always the second Monday in October. As it's also a federal holiday in the U.S., you may be looking at options for a three day vacation. If you are thinking of San Francisco, rest assured, you are not alone: October 4-8: A tradition since 1981, Fleet Week is the most anticipated Fall event in San Francisco. With an estimated audience of 1 million, spectators are drawn every year to the city's northern waterfront to be awed by a parade of Navy ships, along with a spectacular aerial show that includes the Navy Blue Angels. Also on hand are a variety of other nighttime entertainment venues that kick off just as the sun sets over San Francisco Bay. October 5-7: The 12th annual Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is one of the largest (and free-est) music festivals in the U.S. Held in Golden Gate Park, three quarters of a million people are expected for the likes of Patty Griffin, Les Claypool, Cowboy Junkies, Emmylou Harris, Chuck Prophet, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Elvis Costello, Dwight Yoakam, Lloyd Cole, Patti Smith, Steve Earle, Vince Gill, Nick Lowe and more. October 2-7: The second event of the 2012-13 America's Cup World Series will be sharing the City with the iconic events above. The first America's Cup event in San Francisco in August attracted over 150,000 fans to the Marina Green and nearly 500 spectator boats to witness 11 of the best sailing crews in the world battle just yards from the shoreline. In October, the 11 AC45 will return to the Bay in hopes of attracting the attention of the holiday crowds. Full details: http://media.americascup.com/pressreleases/?id=928 The ACWS race schedule has had to work around the Fleet Week activities. The Cup Experience website provides some clarity on how the events will merge: http://tinyurl.com/CE-091912 HOW THEY RANKED The ISAF World Sailing Rankings for September 19th have been released using the new ranking system for the ten events that will be held at the 2016 Olympic Games. Regattas that have taken place since November 6, 2011 (Sail Melbourne) have been re-graded and the new calculation system applied. Ranked sailors will include their best six qualifying events, with results including the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships and the 2012 Class World Championship as well as three of their best finishes from the 2011-2012 ISAF Sailing World Cup. The ranking system is a reflection of a sailor's body of work (six qualifying events), and not necessarily their most recent efforts. As the latest rankings are a calculation of each sailor's score just prior to the 2012 Olympic Games, here is a comparison between the ISAF World Sailing Rankings and the Gold medalists. 470 Men: Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic (CRO) - #1 ranked; 6th at Olympics Mathew Belcher/Malcolm Page (AUS) - Gold medal; #2 ranked 470 Women: Ai Kondo and Wakako Tabata (JPN)- #1 ranked; 14th at Olympics Jo Aleh/ Olivia Powrie (NZL) - Gold medal; #7 ranked 49er: Allan Norregaard/ Peter Lang (DEN) - #1 ranked; Bronze medal Nathan Outteridge/ Iain Jensen (AUS) - Gold medal; #2 ranked Laser: Tom Burton (AUS) - #1 ranked; Did not qualify for Olympics Tom Slingsby (AUS) - Gold medal; #8 ranked Laser Radial: Marit Bouwmeester (NED) - #1 ranked; Silver medal Lijia Xu (CHN) - Gold medal; #8 ranked Finn: Jonas Hogh-Christensen (DEN) - #1 ranked; Silver medal Ben Ainslie (GBR) - Gold medal; #12 ranked The next ranking release is scheduled for October 10th which will see the Men's and Women's Kiteboarding events joining the ISAF Sailing World Rankings for the first time. The Nacra17 (mixed multihull) and 49erFX (women's doublehanded skiff) are set to be introduced into the ISAF Sailing World Cup for the first time throughout the 2012-2013 series and will appear on the rankings following each regatta. Rankings: http://www.sailing.org/news/32286.php Olympic results: http://www.sailing.org/olympics/london2012/results_centre 'BLADE RUNNER' WINS CLASS AT BIG BOAT SERIES Congratulations to Michael Schlens and his team on the Express 27 'Blade Runner' who took home a class victory at the 2012 Rolex Big Boat Series this month in San Francisco! Mick and his crew won the tightly contested one design class by securing a first place finish in the final day, moving into the top spot by two points. The team earned a total 17 points in the nine-race series, including three bullets. 'Blade Runner' was fully powered by Ullman Sails racing inventory, including Carbon GPL upwind sails and Red Line spinnakers. Invest in your performance. http://www.ullmansails.com WINDY CITY Chicago, IL (September 19, 2012) - Leaving no doubt as to the location of the 2012 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, the Windy City produced plenty of breeze for the penultimate day of grand prix racing on Lake Michigan. The southwest wind delivered as predicted, building over the course of the day as the clouds receded and temperatures rebounded by almost 30 degrees from their overnight low, an 18-20 knot breeze -- gusting to 32 -- propelled the 20-strong fleet for the first race of the day. In the second race, the breeze stayed up at 20-35 knots. With results of 5-3 added to his score line, Helmut Jahn's team on Flash Gordon 6 retain their overall lead. "We've been able to find a little bit of speed, and trying to use that to our advantage as much as possible," said Bill Hardesty, who is marking his fifth world championship on Flash Gordon 6 as tactician for current standings leader Helmut Jahn. "Starting as conservatively as possible and trying to leg out...and in the first race we were able to do that. We picked our time to tack and crossed the fleet and just played a couple of wind shifts and rounded second. Had a little bit of a spinnaker pole breakdown on the final run and dropped to fifth, but that's a keeper. "The last race we didn't quite have the great start; we had a little bit of a tangle with another boat in the last 30 seconds and weren't able to cross anyone. We actually tacked and ducked about five boats, but we were still able to use our speed which gets me to positions where I can use the wind shifts to make good tactical calls. The guys are doing great job boat handling and the boat is moving fast. "We're big on routine, so we will just stick to our routine," said Hardesty of the plan for the final day of the championship. "We ride our bikes back and forth, go home, eat dinner, get to bed at 9:30 and wake up at 7:00. We have Evan [Jahn] driving the starts and the first beats, Helmut drives downwind and in either direction they're both doing a fantastic job. But you never know what will happen so you just have to be nimble and see what comes your way." Racing will start at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, September 20, 2012, with three races planned for the final day of the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/RN-091912 Current Results - Top 5 of 20 (after 7 races) 1. Flash Gordon 6, Helmut Jahn, USA, 2-6-3-6-3-5-3; 28 pts 2. Transfusion, Guido Belgiorno-Nettis, AUS, 1-4-8-12/ZFP-4-8-1; 38 3. Struntje Light, Wolfgang Schaefer, GER, 18-1-1-21/ZFP-2-1-2, 46 4. Enfant Terrible, Alberto Rossi, ITA, 3-3-4-3-19-11-4; 47 5. Groovederci, John Demourkas, USA, 5-7-15-10-1-3-7; 48 Complete results: http://tinyurl.com/F40-Worlds-results-2012 Videos: http://tinyurl.com/Video-091912 Photos: http://tinyurl.com/Photo-091912 DOMINANT CONTROL Rochester, NY (September 19, 2012) Three days into the week-long J/24 World Championship at Rochester Yacht Club, and Mauricio Santa Cruz of Brazil has taken dominant control of the 96-boat fleet. Team Bruschetta has held the lead on each day of the event so far, and has now opened up a 41-point advantage with just three races to go. A throw-out took effect on Wednesday, and Santa Cruz dropped a 13, leaving him with all top 10 finishes in the seven races thus far. Following him in the standings to date are American Mike Ingham who shot into second place, and a tie for third between Frithjof Schade's JJone (Germany) and Rossi Milev's Clear Air (Canada) with 67 points each. Winds on Lake Ontario started at 12-14 knots, then built to 18 for most of Race 1, decreased slightly in Race 2, then dropped to 5-7 knots in the final race. Swells lingered from the previous night's storm throughout the day. Racing continues through Friday, and 10 total races are planned. Live updates are available. -- Full report: http://2012j24worlds.com/press/day3.shtml Current Results - Top 10 of 96 (after 7 races, 1 throwout) 1. Bruschetta, Mauricio Santa Cruz (BRA), 2-6-9-1-4-(13)-1, 23 pts 2. 11th Hour Racing, Mike Ingham (USA), (30)-9-20-18-1-14-2, 64 3. JJone, Frithjof Schade (GER), 14-8-7-14-(56)-4-20, 67 3. Clear Air, Rossi Milev (CAN), (74)-16-19-2-13-5-12, 67 5. Bangor Packet, Tony Parker (USA), 12-12-2-(37)-17-20-5, 68 6. Scaramoush, Luis Olcese (PER), 1-15-4-21-25-(28)-4, 70 7. ELVIS, Nicolas Cubria (ARG), 6-11-35-12-2-6-(39), 72 7. 11th Hour Racing, John Mollicone (USA), 13-17-(18)-4-15-9-14, 72 9. Luca, Matias Pereira (ARG), 3-14-(32)-30%-9-11-7, 74 10. 3 Big Dogs, Pat Toole (USA), 4-26-6-24-3-15-(50), 78 Complete results: http://myyc.org/race/list/regatta_id/23 COMMENT: Having raced against Mauricio when he won the 1997 Snipe Worlds, I know he is a phenomenal talent. Since then he has won the J/24 Worlds three times, but what he and his team have done this week is blowing me away. A reminder that this is a 96-boat fleet, where a bad start or crummy first beat will earn you a hefty drop race. I hope I'm not jinxing him, but he is only dropping a 13th. Are you kidding me! - Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt FALL LAYERING GUIDE: LIGHT BASE LAYER Gotta face the facts... fall is here and temperatures are dipping. APS explains how to manage this reality to keep you on the water. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- As the name implies, Base Layers are the first layer of clothing you put on. It is a next-to-skin layer designed to move moisture from your body, providing comfort and allowing your breathable gear to do its job more effectively. Sailing provides a unique set of challenges when it come to moisture management -- short bursts of movement in a sometimes wet environment -- and it is important to choose your base layers carefully, especially when it comes to layering for the cold. Avoid cotton clothing, when possible, as it retains moisture instead of moving it. Base Layers are available in a range of weights to accommodate almost any climate. Ultra-Lightweight Base Layers provide dry, cool comfort and can be used on their own when the temperatures rise while Heavyweight Base Layers keep you dry and warm when the temps bottom out. Stay on the water longer and get as much as you can from the shorter Fall days by following our Layering Guide for the Fall Season. -- Read on: http://blog.apsltd.com/2012/09/ready-for-fall-layering-guide-light.html SAVE UP TO $1,340 OFF A BRAND NEW BOAT AT APS! Ready for a new boat? Be ready to save! We have new Lasers available with savings of over $1,000 for a boat and hull cover at APS. Laser not your style? We also have Laser Performance and McLaughlin boats with savings up to $1,340. Take advantage of the huge deals on brand new Lasers, Club 420s, Optis, Sunfish and get yourself the ultra-competitive race boat you've always wanted. These prices rarely come around, so get the new boat you need at the value you want for a short time, only at APS. Read on: http://bit.ly/OXceCM SAILING SHORTS * Newport, RI (September 19, 2012) - The award winning selections have been announced from the 2012 Newport International Boat Show in Newport, RI. The awards are made as part of the Show's Newport For New Products program to recognize the best boats and boating products being introduced at the Show for the coming model year. Honorees included the Motive 25R Trimaran from Motive Trimarans of New York, NY which took Best New Sailboat honors and Raymarine's i50 and i60 Instruments which took honors as the Show's Best New Boating Product for the Nashua, NH company. -- Full report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=14528 * The 2012 Open 5.70 North American Championship is going to be held in San Francisco, CA at Golden Gate Yacht Club from September 21-23, 2012. The regatta will see 20+ Open 5.70s competing for the coveted "Open 5.70 Keel" perpetual trophy. The regatta will take place along the city front in San Francisco - the same venue for the America's Cup. Details: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=14526 * The 2012 Women's Sunfish North American Championship was held September 14-16 on Lake Keystone in Oklahoma. Light winds prevailed for the event, with first time champion Marquerite Koelher from Long Island dominating the four race event. -- Full report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=14529#14529 * American match racing guru Dave Perry will attempt to capture an unprecedented fifth U.S. Match Racing Championship this week in Marblehead, Mass. Ten teams will compete in Sonars for the Prince of Wales Bowl at the 2012 U.S. Match Racing Championship, hosted by the Boston Yacht Club. This four day US Sailing National Championship starts this Thursday, September 20. -- Read on: http://media.ussailing.org/Latest_News/2012/USMRC_2012_preview.htm INDUSTRY NEWS UPDATES The Industry News category of the Scuttlebutt Forum provides an opportunity for companies to announce new products and services. Here are some of recent postings: * Nautical Channel on DISH * Wraceboats GP26 designed By Jim Donovan * Timeless Jewelry with a Nautical Twist View updates here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum/industry_news EIGHT BELLS Family, faith, ships and the sea defined the life of Peter Kent. A resident of Long Beach, CA for more than 60 years, Kent died Sept. 15 after a lengthy illness at his home in Alamitos Heights. He was 84. Kent, who grew up in Brockton, Mass., and attended Holy Cross University, joined the Long Beach Yacht Club in 1966 for two reasons: to get a slip in Basin Four for his Cal 20, and free ice. He had a succession of five sailboats, all named Pop N Us to reflect a family consisting of six sons and three daughters who made up the crew pool. "Dad had his hands full on the course managing a crew of tacticians who were also his kids," noted son Paul. "But he did so with grace and a pipe in his mouth. Pretty impressive!" Kent was the 1977 Congressional Cup chairman - the year that, after seven tries, Ted Turner won. Turner went on to capture the America's Cup later in the year. Kent became LBYC's Commodore in 1983. After 38 years of marriage, Lydia Kent died in 1989. It is in her memory and that of Connie Golison, wives and mothers of two of Long Beach's most prominent sailing families, that the Golison & Kent Family Trophy is annually awarded at Long Beach Race Week. The trophy recognizes the highest placing boat with the lowest average race score, whose skipper sails the series with a minimum of three family members aboard including the skipper. A visitation will be held from 5-9 p.m. Thursday at Forest Lawn in Cypress in the Church of Our Father. A funeral will be at 10 a.m. Friday at St. Bartholomew Church (252 Granada Ave), with a celebration at Long Beach Yacht Club on Friday at 1:00 p.m. -- Complete obituary: http://tinyurl.com/Paul-Kent-091912 GUEST COMMENTARY Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community. Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250 words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. Email: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From BJ Jones, Tempest #197: Here's another Conn Findlay story attesting to how nice a guy he was. The 1976 U.S. Olympic Trials for all boats was at Association Island, in upstate New York on the Eastern shore of Lake Ontario. A friend and I sailed in the trials for the Tempest and I encountered Conn during measurement. Our boat was an older O'Day, and when we put it on the scale at home we found it was a bit overweight...40 pounds overweight. So I commenced to lop off a chunk of the bulb to reduce the weight. Well, it turns out the scale I had used wasn't quite right, and when I measured in at the trials, the boat was now 20 pounds too light. The chunk of lead from the bulb was now at home, and we were in the middle of nowhere with a boat that wouldn't measure in. I was alone waiting for my crew to arrive from school and not sure what to do. Next to me was Conn, measuring in his and Dennis' boat. He saw my plight, offered up the needed lead and even helped me bolt it in. He probably wasn't worried about us as a threat, but it still was a wonderful gesture. After that I followed his sailing career, and always admired not only how good a sailor he was, but how he was an even better person. I don't think I ever heard anything negative about him. Thanks Conn. * From Scott Diamond: In response to Peter Reggio's comment, "not having tides, current or shallow spots on the race course also means that local knowledge is not a major factor when racing in Chicago" (in Scuttlebutt 3679),this smells of east coast sailing arrogance. As stated earlier in the week regarding the Farr 40 Worlds venue by tactician Bill Hardesty on local boat Flash Gordon 6, "way more weather patterns come through and the wind is all dependent on what the weather system is at the time. Here, anything can happen on any day and so you have to be prepared for whatever you get thrown." Is it just coincidence that this local boat is leading? While in many ocean venues, the local conditions are known by all the locals and very consistent ( i.e.; the sea breeze fills in almost like clockwork, the tides are known, shoals are known, etc.), the factors in Chicago are dependent on other exterior factors (land temp, water temp, previous days wind direction and sea state). Depending on where the race course is set will even have impact on the conditions. Just look at the Chicago NOOD regatta, where the three circles just a few miles apart often have completely different wind conditions. In my 40 years of sailing in Chicago, I would have to disagree and say that local knowledge is critical in Chicago, and even harder to make sense of some times. I remember a weather article that Olympic Star medalist Dick Stearns wrote prior to a T-10 National Championship in Chicago. It was more of matrix of what ifs - if this happens then this, but if that happens then that. We have a saying in Chicago...if you don't like the weather just wait 5 minutes and it will change. * From Ray Tostado: Let's not forget back in the heydays of Newport, RI and wooden 12 meters that for some crazy promotional value, a cadre of football linemen were matched against a crew of grinders from the America's Cup roster. It was some sort of power lift, push, lift, etc. contest. The grinders won. It was hardly a contest. * From Nancy Graver: A reminder that while the US Olympic team was medal-less at the 2012 Games, the US Paralympic team was not. The Skud-18 team out of St Petersburg, Fl - Jen French and JP Creignou - took silver. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION I'm speeding because I have to get there before I forget where I'm going. SPONSORS THIS WEEK Quantum Sails - New England Ropes - US Sailing - North Sails Allen Insurance and Financial - BIC Sport North America Southern Spars - Dieball Sailing - Ullman Sails - APS Beneteau America - Melges Performance Sailboats Need stuff? 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